If you really like the rifle then the muzzle brake is the way to go. If you don't like the rifle in question you could go to something like .260 or the 6.5 Creedmore. You'll get a flatter shooting round with adequate punch for hunting and better ballistics due to the high sectional density of the 6.5 bullets, and lighter recoil. I'd suggest getting into reloading regardless of keeping the rifle or not. Since you're only shooting out to 500 at most, you could load some Sierra 150 match or the 155 Palmas with lighter powder loads and still find a decent load that won't kill your shoulder. The good thing about the .308 is that it will usually shoot very well using a wide variety of powders and bullets.